Its hi-tech potential sent the shares soaring since the 1996 float at 280p. They rose 23p to 800p yesterday as the group lifted half-year pre-tax profits 13pc to £8.6m with dividends also up 13pc to 3.5p.

Helped by acquisitions, sales rose 31pc to £167m.

Chairman Sir Anthony Cleaver's target is £500m annually. He says: 'We are making good progress.' AEA monitors nuclear safety from Dounreay to Chernobyl, detects pollution in China, makes batteries in Caithness and sells engineering software in the US. A ragbag of small earners, say critics but Sir Anthony sees '11 businesses at the leading edge of science and engineering'.